Mariefred Things to Do

There are a few buildings in the village that are worth mentioning and one of these is the Callanderska Gården. It is not only a house with a history, it also is a little museum (opened only during the summer months). The original house was destroyed during the big fire of Mariefred in 1682, but it was luckily rebuild. In 1947 this buidling was...

If you follow the Kyrkogatan and turn left you will get to the main square of Mariefred, called Rådhustorget (Town Hall Square). And as the name already says it, this square is dominated by the Town Hall. The Town Hall was built on the initiative of King Gustav III in 1784. The large stylish yellow building is nice to look at, but for me the most...

Mariefred itself is maybe nothing spectacular, but I found it such a picturesque place, it is absolutely worth a visit! Its most famous attraction is Gripsholm Castle, but even without Gripsholm Castle I would go here for just a nice stroll and look around the little village. I really love the nice little streets with all the wooden houses of this...

The steam train was not 'home' when I was at the train station, so instead this picture of an old loc that was standing here. But if you like you can go on a little trip with the old steam train from Mariefred. The railway is rather special as it is a 600 mm gauge railway. A really nice daytrip would make their "Mariefred roundtrip", which is a...

You are now almost back at the beginning of the little walk through Mariefred. From the town pump take a turn to the left, into the Nygatan, and you will automatically end up at the train station of Mariefred. This little train station is a lovely place to see. It looks so picturesque and for me it felt like stepping back in time. And well, I...

But not only on the inside is a little museum, the whole area of the train station itself has turned into a living museum. They've placed several historical object around the train station, like an old lamp post on the train platform next to to the tracks, and also this old fashioned phone booth. I had never seen anything like it before, so of...

At the trainstation I also spotted this fun clock! It is not like the usual ones that I know, because this one counts to 24! So funny :-) When writing down a time in Holland (and Sweden) we often use this system of 24 hours in a day instead of AM and PM. But I never saw it on a clock before! So great!

The whole building is mainly build in Jugendstil, mainly noticeable by the proportions of the steep roofs, towers and pinnacles. To get the building back to its original charm the station had extensive maintenance projects between 1985 and 1993, and it really paid off. Beside the architecture of this train station, I loved all the little details,...

And well, who can't resist taking a stop at the Bryggargården?? Unfortunately it isn't a "Brewers yard" anymore as the name in Swedish suggests, but now in use as a normal house. The house was built in 1783 and the sign that you can see in the first photo is a copy of the original sign of a 17th century brewer' sign. The house isn't so spectacular,...

Mariefred Restaurants

"Två Goda Ting" is a combination of a coffeehouse and a little shop specialized in coffee and tea. It is only a tiny place, but cleverly decorated, making it look much spacier then it is, and filled with all kinds of chocolate and coffee goodies you can dream of.

Although easily overlooked when you don't know about this lovely little shop, it is very easy to find. Just walk through the main street of Mariefred (no need to look for that one, Mariefred is so small, you can’t really miss finding this street). Opposite the ICA Supermarket you will find the store. It really is a great place to drop in after a nice stroll through Mariefred. Just order your favourite type of coffee or hot chocolate and feast your eyes on the broad selection of quality chocolate(s) and coffee that is for sale. The prices aren’t that cheap, but it all is good quality and very VERY hard to resist.... at least for lovers of chocolate and coffee :-)

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Food and Dining

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Mariefred Transportation

During the summer season you can go from Stockholm to Mariefred on a special day trip ticket. In 2006 this tickets cost 250 SEK and include train to Läggesta where you change to a old steam train for the last 15 minutes. In Mariefred you will then have some hours to walk around until you take a old steam boat back to Stockholm.Tickets can be bought...

The most romantic way to travel in Sweden :-) The s/s Mariefred is probably the ship that has trafficked the same stretch in Sweden longest, as she has done the Stockholm to Mariefred run since 1903! My father went on it as a child when this was the only way to get to Mariefred within a reasonable amount of time. The Stockholm to Mariefred run...

Mariefred Shopping

A very sweet little shop selling classical toys, souverniers and "old-style" groceries. Perfect for finding a gift to bring back home. The toys are well-designed and high-quality, the groceries are very "swedish".

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Romantic Travel and Honeymoons

Castles and Palaces

Family Travel

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Mariefred Local Customs

In July, there is often a market and tournament week. A grass plain in the town centre is taken over by jousting knights (entrance fee, but tickets are readily available for most performances or can be pre booked at the tourist information) and there is a market full of medieval jousting and juggling things, mead etc. whilst you can also try archery and your children can paint shields and swords etc. Check www.strangnas.se for the exact dates when it gets close.

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Family Travel

Historical Travel

Festivals

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Mariefred Tourist Traps

Gripsholm is a very lovely castle in Mariefred. Built 450 years ago, it is in fine condition with a range of rooms to wander varying in period from the renaissance to the 18th century. There are hundreds of fabulous portrait paintings inside. It is interesting, colourful and generally worth a visit. BUT be warned that you are not permitted to take photos inside. This would be fine and is certainly understandable (flash photography in particular is destructive to pigments) BUT there is NO book in existence which has the portraits in it. There are some postcards for sale, but no catalogue, posters or picture cd exist for the rest. Tough luck.

Unique Suggestions:
The castle IS still worth a visit, it is just frustrating.

Fun Alternatives:
The Museum of Antiquities in Stockholm is pretty impressive and allows photography in all but the gold room.

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Historical Travel

Castles and Palaces

Photography

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Mariefred What to Pack

Miscellaneous: The daylight hours (hours between sunrise and sunset) vary a lot between the winter and summer months. People may expect to see the midnight sun during the summer, because they are in Scandinavia. But this is not true for Mariefred, because you are not far enough north in the country.

In December you will only have 6 hours to enjoy the day. The sun will get up around 8:30 in the morning but is already setting again before 3 o'clock in the afternoon and that doesn't leave you that much time to do some sightseeing.

In June it is a totally different world, and I love this time of year. Around the longest day (21 June) you will experience the long looooong days! There are 18,5 hours of daylight during those days, the day seems to last forever. The only disadvantage is when you are a light sleeper, as the night only last 5,5 hours.

Mariefred Off The Beaten Path

• Anundshög: old burial mounds from Viking Age.• Birka: ruins from old capital city of Sweden.• Mariefred with Gripsholm Castle. A picturesque village and a beautiful castle. In the castle is also the Swedish National Portrait Collection.• Sigtuna: old city with lots of historical background.• Sko Kloster: one of the most popular castles with a...

• Eskilstuna: not a real tourist destination, but it has some nice places. My favourite of all is the Fors Kyrka (Fors Church). Also worth visiting is the Klosterkyrka, sculpture 'Hand of God' by Miles, the historic area of "Rademachersmedjorna" and the museum "Faktorimuseet".• Tidö slott: A beautiful castle with a toy museum.• Ängsö Castle: A...

Mariefred is located at Lake Mälaren, which is the third in size lake in Sweden. It has a climate quiet different compared to other close by areas. It is more humid and warmer in the summer, but not as cold in the winter. This has created a specific flora and also a special fauna. Several species of flowers and trees only grow around Lake Mälaren...

Mariefred Sports & Outdoors

OK, so the weather in this picture isn't that inspiring, but as I am typing this, we have had 30 degrees C for days, and a week of tropical nights (nigh temperature above 20 degrees). Lake M?laren is full of little hideaways for a swim - just ask at the tourist information for the kind of beach you like. There closest one to the town is probably the beach at Mariefred Camping.

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Family Travel

Sailing and Boating

Beaches

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Mariefred Favorites

Favorite thing:
Mariefred town itself is a great place to just stroll in when you have had time to see the castle. The tourist office is in the nice yellow court house building in the main square and can give you more tips, but Callanderska is one of the many nice wooden townhouses with green and pleasant inner yards in Mariefred, typical of Swedish wooden towns. A stroll along the waterfront is also nice.

Mariefred is a small town located on the west side of lake Mälaren. It's a good place to visit to get a view over a old style Swedish town. You can easy get to Mariefred on a daytrip from Stockholm....